Subscribe to this blog

Follow by Email

Chhachra - a tasty vegetable peel recipe

The Cheat in the retreat

Chhenchra is a term
associated with cheating or swindling, knavish, one who is unwilling to repay
debts, a cheat, a swindler, a knave, a bad paymaster. This particular dish you
may call will cheat you as a very expensive one and it may appear to be a very
difficult recipe that cannot be easily afforded. But this is a dry dish which
can be cooked with discarded vegetable skins from other dishes and fish bones
cooked in a little oil. It is a most admirable bhog of Durga puja in the
autumn.

Chhachra [ছ্যাঁচড়া]is
a very simple item, having lots of vegetables and also their peels.You
will need vegetable skins thickly cut along with a fair amount of the flesh.It is a favourite Bengali dish. It
consists of peels, skin, stems of thrown away or left over vegetable
ingredients, such as peel of green gourd, potato skin, thick slices of potato,
brinjal, local flat beans, long beans, sweet gourd or pumpkin [skin intact],
cauliflower stem, stem of edible green leaves cooked in minimum amount of
mustard oil, and like CHORCHORI the recipe needs fenugreek, bay leaves,
and dry whole red chili tempering and artistic touch with mustard seed paste with salt
and green chilli and a bit of mustard oil which when kept covered increases the
strong pungent aroma. It is a dry dish. After finishing cooking with little mustard paste add some
sugar, this makes it a straddling and loved item. Even elite families ask
their cook to make this dish with expelled ingredients [on other days] to
celebrate traditional Bengali food on special occasions.

Drop the peeler, eating the skins of fruit and ­vegetables
could boost your nutritional intake of vitamins, combat cancer and increase
your energy levels. All fruit and vegetables have a "biosynergy",
which means the nutritional benefits of each part are reinforced by the others
and the skin is not the only healthy bit we discard stalks and cores can also
be packed with nutrients.

If it is the same color
throughout, you are getting the same nutrition with a peeled vegetable. A
radish has a thin red peel, but the color comes from a water-soluble colouring
agent called anthocyanin, which does not have a lot of nutritional benefits. Even
with peeled onions, the loss of one thin layer of onion skin does not make a
big difference. The big exception is the potato, where there is a striking
difference between peel and flesh. There is a lot of nutrition in the skin.Somefruitsand vegetables weshould try to eat as a whole...

Kiwi fruit

The hairy skin of the kiwi
fruit is high in antioxidants and is thought to have anti-cancer,
anti-inflammatory and anti-allergenic properties. The skin contains three times
the antioxidants of the pulp. It also fights off bugs such as Staphylococcus
and E-coli, which are responsible for food poisoning.

Pineapple

It is the tough core of the
pineapple, not the prickly skin you should be tucking into. Along with fibre
and vitamin C, a pineapple’s real benefit lies in an enzyme called bromelain,
which breaks down food and dead human tissues and linger in the digestive
system, protecting the stomach. The core of a pineapple contains twice
the bromelain concentration of the surrounding fruit.

Broccoli or cauliflower

Those neat little florets
look more appealing, but there is every reason to eat the stalks, too.

Stalks can be less
flavourful than the florets, but they are notably higher in calcium and vitamin
C. The stalks are also high in soluble fibre, so you’ll feel fuller for longer.

Bananas

Researchers in Taiwan
discovered banana peel extract can ease depression as it is rich in serotonin,
the mood-balancing chemical. The skin was also found to be good for eyes, as it
contains the antioxidant lutein which -protects eye cells from exposure to ultraviolet
light — a leading cause of cataracts.

Garlic

Garlic skin contains six
separate antioxidant compounds, according to research from Japan. Peeling
garlic cloves removes the phenylpropanoid antioxidants which help fight the
ageing process and protect the heart.

Citrus fruits

Orange and tangerine peel
is high in powerful antioxidants called super-flavonoids, which can
significantly reduce levels of ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol, without lowering the
‘good’ HDL levels. The antioxidants obtained from the peel were 20 times more
powerful than those from the juice, according to a U.S. study. ‘The same goes
for all citrus fruits. ‘The white pith contains high levels of pectin, a
component of dietary fibre known to lower cholesterol and colonise the gut with
beneficial bacteria.’

Pumpkin, butternut and
other squashes

All squashes are high in
zinc, which helps promote healthy skin and nails, and the antioxidant beta
carotene which protects against heart disease and cancer. The skin itself is
obviously too tough to eat, but the closer you scrape it against the skin for
the pulp — where it is more of a rich, orange colour. The seeds are an
excellent source of Omega 6 and essential fatty acids that keep your brain
healthy.

Potatoes

Most people know potato
skins are healthy, but few are aware of the reason why. It’s because the skin
is a real nutritional powerhouse. Just one fist-sized potato skin provides half
your daily recommended intake of soluble fibre, potassium, iron, phosphorous
zinc and vitamin C. Pound for pound, potatoes contain more vitamin C than oranges,
so are perfect for anyone looking to ward off colds.

It is not only
nutritious, but is also a wonderful cooling vegetable that can really help you
fight the hot summer months. It helps in weight loss and brings glow to the
skin.

Few causes of dull skin are
sunburn, stress, illness and age, which results in dark eye circles, which
leads to early wrinkles. Rub the bottle gourd flesh on your face,
required portion massage with motion, it helps making skin soft and supple and by
neutralizing the skin damage. Even if one has prominent spots of eucoderma [শ্বেতী], freckles/ephelis/lentigo
[মেচেতা],
or urticaria [ছুলি],
it will make it vanish after regular usage.

Eating roasted bottle gourd
juice repairs the skins. Add some honey in it. You can have this juice every
day. This juice surely will make your skin glow after some time.

একলাউকাটিয়াপুরিলএকহাঁড়ি।।

জ্বালদিয়াহাঁড়িরউপরেরেখেহাঁড়ি।

উঠানেআনিয়াভাঙ্গেলাউপোড়াহাঁড়ি।।

শ্রীশ্রীহরিলীলামৃত/মধ্যখণ্ড/সপ্তমতরঙ্গ/৪

In the scorching summer
heat a bowl of gourd which does not pacify ones soul, such Bengalis are hard to
be found. Curry to dessert, the blessings of bottle gourd are unmatched. As a
matter of fact gourd is also used in most of the favourite sweet dishes of a
Bengali. "lau morabba" is a very delicious creation. Siuri and Rampurhat
of Birbhum, West bengal is famous for this.

It
is true that pesticide spraying is a regular "inbuilt" activity of
modern agriculture. However just throwing out the skins of vegetables or fruits
will not remove most pesticides sprayed on, since those pesticides are often
systemic in action and not contact, i.e. the poison is absorbed into the whole
fruits not just the outer part!

When you peel the
outer skins from vegetables, you are throwing away many of the nutrients the
food contains. It is best to scrub the outer skin and leave it on for cooking
and eating to get the most health benefits. The method of cooking is important
also in saving nutrients. Vegetables are tossing away some of that goodness
during cooking. The best method of cooking is steaming.

·Bottle gourd reduces hunger pangs as it is
full of fiber and water

·If one is suffering from high acidity or
burning sensation then by drinking the juice one can combat the problem

·It can bring back the lost glow of the skin or
enhance the color of the skin as well.

·Drinking bottle gourd juice with salt keeps
one refreshed and cool during summer

·If you are suffering from any digestive
problem or if one is diabetic then bottle gourd juice can help the diseased
person.

·Dietary fiber present in the bottle gourd
helps in constipation, flatulence and even hemorrhoids.

·Pulp of bottle gourd rubbed on the soles
relieves the heat and burning sensation.

Bottle gourd is immensely
beneficial for the treatment of skin diseases like eucoderma, lentigo, or urticaria.
The process is simple. A small portion of the gourd has to be slightly roasted
and then rubbed on the affected area in regular intervals of 2-3 days. The scar
vanishes eventually.

The soft white inner
portion of the gourd if rubbed on the face regularly helps in preserving
glamour and prevents the appearance of signs of ageing.

The juice of gourd
extracted after slight roasting if had with some honey helps in treating
digestive disorders, hematorragia, bad body odour and vomiting feeling during
fever.

The juice of the ground
stem with some water treats acute and chronic constipation. Pyorrhea and bad
breadth can be treated by rinsing the mouth with the juice of roasted bottle
gourd that has been kept for 10 minutes prior consumption.